that many people did not know how to finish the binding off without wrapping one around the other.. or a hot mess... i knew i had to do this tutorial!

i hope it helps you out a bit!

start with cutting your strips...

many people {and patterns} say 2.5"

but i usually do 2.25"

they can be bias or straight of grain.

i do bias most of the time... but i also do straight when the fabric design calls for it.

{bias will make the binding last longer over time}

either way.. piece your strips together on a 45 degree angle

take one end and cut it at a 45 degree angle.

do this before you iron.

& before you sew it onto your quilt.

do it now.

iron your seams open.

{to avoid bulk}

iron binding in half... wrong sides together.

you should have a nice pile like this.

start sewing onto your quilt... using the end you cut at 45 degrees

leave a 8" or so tail

sew the binding to your quilt sandwich a 1/4" seam

on the right side of quilt

raw edges of binding to raw edges of quilt.

stop 1/4" from the corner. backstitching helps.

{be precise here.. mark it if you have to... it'll make things perfect.}

fold binding over itself 90 degrees...

basically opposite of where you want to sew it to next.

then fold it back to look like this.

continue sewing the binding on...

being careful at all corners.

till you get 12" away from where you started.

you should have something looking like this.

take the piece you just ended with {left} and line it up where you would have continued to sew.

open it up towards the quilt like this...

then take the piece you cut at 45 degrees earlier {right} and lay it inside the open part like this.

open the 2nd piece {right} like this.

now use a pencil or thin pen to draw a line where the 45 degree angle piece {right} lands on the first piece {left}

take the excess binding off the quilt top from the left...

and lay it on a cutting mat... like this.

cut the excess binding off 1/2" past the line you drew.

that will provide you with the 1/4" seam allowance needed on each piece.

it should look like this.

put the two ends together & pin

sew with 1/4" seam allowance removing pins as you go.

iron the seam open.

& then iron the binding back in half onto the quilt

the binding should lay perfectly flat on the quilt.

sew the remaining part onto the quilt & nobody will ever know where you started putting your binding on.. it'll be perfectly smooth!

fold the binding around to the back & hand stitch in place!

be happy that you have a quilt that is almost finished!!

Edit 1/31/11
Want to know how to hand sew the binding to the back of the quilt and finish your corners perfectly? I've added a new post that goes over just that! It also includes a video where I show the hand stitching steps of binding.

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want to link to this tutorial?

grab a button!

{144 x 144}

{250x250}

enjoy!!

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In addition to this tutorial I have two other binding tutorials.Binding Basics goes over tips and tricks for binding and includes a video.Binding Flange shows how to add a flange to basic binding.

Thank you for the great tutorial! I do have one more question though...what type of stitch do you use to hand sew? I use a running stitch, but am wondering it this is right. Thank you for your help and for your wonderful blog!

A friend sent me a link to your blog today, saying I had to look at your method because “it’s almost the way you do it” It is, and I like yours and am going to give it a try. Thanks for sharing it!MargeDelaware Quiltshttp://delawarequilts.blogspot.com/2010/01/almost-prefect-binding.html

Great tutorial! I finally figured out how to make a perfect join with a straight edge. Never have been able to make the bias join work out nice and flat for me. I'll have to give this one a try! I also use 2.5" bindings...perhaps I'll see how I like 2.25 on the next quilt. I've seen that number pop up a few times lately. Thanks

I love this method and always use it! However, I have TWICE cut the tail 1/2" shorter instead of a 1/2" longer. And I have to admit that last night was one of the two times I have done this. So, I added another strip and got to practice the technique again. To self: measure twice, cut once! Thanks for the tutorial to pass along.

I use the same method as you do for binding...I've read hundreds of different tutorials on the same method as this one and for some reason I just can't seem to get it right.....one problem is, I can never seem to get the tail ends together, so I changed it for myself, which I think is part of my problem......so I'll keep trying...practice makes perfect.

This is a great tutorial! They only thing that I am still confused about is the corners :-)I have one small quilt that I have pieced and I am curious to know more since I will have to be bound sooner or later. Once you stop at 1/4 from the edge and do the foldy thing, do you start sewing again on the new side?

Love the tutorial. I found this method in a magazine skill builder 5 years ago and made copies for all my friends and handed them out in plastic sleeves at my friendship group. Now I can send folks to your blog for a refresher.

I do my binding almost the same but I leave the ends of my strips squared off. To join up the ends, I lay the strips flat along the edge of the quilt, then fold one strip back onto itself from where it meets the other strip. I cut a scant 2.5" beyond this fold (or the width you cut your strips; I trim a 1/4" beyond the raw edge therefore the 2.5" strips). Now I join these ends just like I did when making the binding strips. You get the same end result but you don't have to worry about handling bias edges.Amy R (rothfamily98@yahoo.com)

binding is my least fav thing about quilting. whenever i sew it on, it moves even if i pin it. when i do the mitered corner, i sew too far and then it doesnt' fold over right. i have been shown numerous times how to join the ends and that doesnt' work either. so all my quilts sit unfinished and raveling. :( i will log onto my laptop and link your site and try to follow your tutorial. thank u for clear pictures.

Thanks Julie! Some of this I knew already, but your tutorial really cleared up a few issues for me. Also, my corners weren't coming out good, and I figured out I was folding the miter on the back the wrong direction and it was making 2 points. Strange, but fixed now. Thanks again!

Thanks for the great tutorial. I have been quilting for many years and thanks to you no longer have lumpy bindings. I also am a new fan of the 21/4inch strip binding! I posted a link to your tut from my blog. Thanks! Jeri

Yikes! The first two times I tried to sew the two pieces together I forgot to make the little points overlap, then the third time I had twisted one side, and finally the fourth time I got it right...but then my bobbin ran out just as I started to sew the last part to my sandwich!

Eventually it turned out OK though, and next time will be even better! :)

Hi Julie - I linked to your binding tutorial today on a mug rug tutorial today as it's such a good one there seems little point in doing one myself! Just wanted to let you know :) If it's not ok, I'll take it down, no worries.

I used this tutorial to finish the binding on a quilt yesterday. I've never really known how to connect the beginning and the end, and with the help of your tutorial, it came out perfect! Thank you so much!

Like many of the others here, I have done nearly everything the same apart from having that 45 angle cut at the start point - that should make marking to make the join easier at the end. Great tutorial and so specific and easy to follow with all the pictures. I've tried to grab your button, but not sure if I've done it right.

Love the tutorial! Just bound my first quilt EVER with this method. It looks so pretty and seamless. The perfectionist in me was having a hard time thinking the ends of the binding needed to be overlapped and extra bulky at the join. Thank you so much!

Just popping over from Adventures of the Singing Quilter . She linked up to this post about biding and I just wanted to say thankyou! Ive never been able to master this method and have had lumpy joins in every quilt I've ever made. That problem is now solved. Thanks for making your tutorial so easy to follow.

Thank you so much in showing how to do the binding. I have tried so many times and could not get it right. I can read but it was not making any sense to me. Your pictures are what helped me in seeing what to do. It was so easy to make the binding and they all look perfect on table runners for my girls for Christmas.thank you again.

Only 4-1/2 years since I first saw this tutorial (and commented on it), I finally tried it. Loved it so much! Buh-bye, specialty "binding tool" - I no longer need you! I even linked to your tutorial on my blog! Thanks, Julie!